Improving water planning through integration of humanitarian and utilitarian needs

Ensuring water security for a variety of users is fundamental for the wellbeing of the planet and humankind. To examine how we approach water planning and its value, we interpret water policy and management in Australia and Aotearoa-New Zealand from the viewpoint of the multiple related benefits it provides. Through a Modified Sphere of Needs Met by Water, we demonstrate the potential for an integrated approach to planning for the water cycle, where spiritual and cultural needs are considered iteratively with more utilitarian needs. We illustrate the working of the Sphere through historical and current cases of river dam development in Australia and Aotearoa-New Zealand, examining the potential for more sustainable utilitarian outcomes when spiritual and cultural values are given equal priority. We find integrating spiritual and utilitarian values could improve institutional design, provide for social cohesion, and could be a way of resolving conflicts relating to dams, common throughout the world.